FOUR FAMOUS DIAMONDS

The Regent:

Considered the purest and most beautiful of diamonds, this was found by an Indian slave in 1701, and weighed 410 carats in the rough. The slave apparently hid the stone and escaped with it, only to be robbed and killed by an English sea captain. Thomas Pitt, forbearer to two prime ministers, bought the diamond and smuggled it back to England. It was sold to the Duke of Orleans, named The Regent and set in the crown Louis XV wore at his coronation. After the French revolution, it was owned by Napoleon, who set it in the hilt of his sword. It is now in the Louvre.

The Blue Hope:

Most notorious of diamonds, the Hope (a rare blue colour due to trace amounts of boron atoms) has a reputation for bringing bad luck to all who possess it. Once owned by Louis XIV, it was stolen during the French Revolution, turned up in London in 1830 and was bought by a London banker, Henry Philip Hope, after whom it is currently named. After buying the diamond, Hope lost all his money and his family died in poverty. The next owner, Edward McLean, died in a mental institution. The stone is now in the Smithsonian Institution in Washington.

The Koh-I-Noor:

Otherwise known as the Mountain of Light, weighing 105.6 carats, this is another stone that carries tales of evil luck — if worn by a man. Which is why the diamond, now part of the British Crown Jewels, is only ever worn by female members of the family. It is on public display in the Jewel House at the Tower of London, but the governments of India and Pakistan have both claimed ownership.

The Great Moghul:

The missing diamond. This was found around 1650 in southern India, given to Shah Jahan, the fifth Mughal emperor, then became part of the spoils of war when Mughal India was invaded by the Persian ruler Nadir Shah. Nadir Shah returned home with the stone but was assassinated in 1747 and the stone disappeared. It has only ever popped up since in Conan Doyle’s novel The Sign of the Four.